T cannot be said that China does not

move, but thus far her movements have not been along predicted or demanded lines. There is a pathetic contradiction in her movements. She raises an army and demands that the soldier shall provide his own weapons and serve without pay. Not long since, several officers

in the regular army made a friendly call at the chapel. We spoke of the drilling of troops, asked when they would again be drilling, and whether it would be allowable for me to take a picture of them on the parade grounds. They assured me that it would, and asked what sort of drill I preferred to see that with guns, spears or bows and arrows, saying that by far the best sight would be that with bows and arrows.

Not long after this we took a trip of thirty miles along the coast. I would not attempt to say how many old forts and

signal stations could be counted in that distance. An American would think it incredible if told. The cannon are now dismounted and the forts largely dismantled. At none of them would you find a garrison. The walls, once formidable, have been conquered by time and now lie prone in the dust. What was once the abode of strong men- and we may add, men with brave hearts is now the home of snakes and bats. Gates that once refused entrance to hostile troops now stand ever ajar, and welcome the buffalo and the goat to pasture on the sward within. Yet at times these ruins are the scenes of greatest activity. Coast defences are to be inspected! Each fort, dilapidated though it be, has its garrison hired for the occasion. The regulation number of banners (about two to every five soldiers) is displayed, and the dragon takes up his position on the flag-pole. The inspector knows his business and does not

go too near the forts. He passes on, and the flag is hauled down and the banners folded away to await another occasion. The garrisons are paid off and the farce is over. This does not occur in the corner of the empire, but in an open part like Swatow the comedy is well played.

The official district in which Ungkung is located and of which it is the military center contains, roughly speaking, about one thousand square miles. To protect that region and to assist in repelling foreign invasion, more than six hundred soldiers are nominally required, and for this number the head military official draws pay from the Government. As a matter of fact, the district contains about one dozen regulars and the required number of “occasionals," as before explained.

An army equipped with bows and arrows, matchlocks and spears, fortifications manned by beggars, thieves and opium smokers, hired for the occasion; regulars on paper only; this may be movement, but it is such movement as a man makes in a drunken sleep. The military farce in China is an example of what one may find in every walk of life. In spite of all that can be said to the contrary, the last scene in the farce is being played, and the drunkard will soon awake to find himself stripped and wounded. Russia presses on the north, France races up from the south to defeat England's long projected plan of connecting Burma with with Shanghai and Hongkong. England nominally controls the center, while Germany inserts a wedge between England and Russia. Italy and Japan are filibustering between Shanghai and Hongkong. This state of unrest, of plot and counterplot, cannot long continue, and China has neither the will nor the power to put off the final day. What China, or rather what the Chinese need, is reality and conscience. From what power shall these be obtained? Not from Russia, France, Germany nor England, but from the kingdom of heaven.

Nothing since the war with Japan has led the Chinese to distrust their Government more than has the demand of Italy. I have been asked repeatedly, "What country is Italy? We never heard of it before." And the universal comment is, "Well, if China cannot resist the demands of that country she is of no account, and we need hope nothing further from her." With this loss of faith in the Government there is an evident revival of heathenism. Buddhist societies are active, temples and monasteries are being repaired and new ones built. I recently visited a temple that could not have cost less than $50,000, and I believe $100,000 would be nearer the cost. The gods were life size, covered with gold, and placed in glass cases, and a western clock was provided by which they might mark the rounds of time! How far this revival of heathenism is general I cannot say; I speak for my own district only. Perhaps the renewal of faith in the gods is only natural; but faith in the gods is destined to fail, and this will be the church's great opportunity.

Missionaries to Japan frequently say that Japan is the gateway to China, but I have never heard a missionary to China express that opinion. However, the first Japanese missionaries have arrived in the south of the Fo-kien Province, perhaps elsewhere. But they are the ambassadors of Japanese heathenism, not of Christianity. With what success do they meet? Teaching is apparently only a secondary matter. The people are enrolled, and promised help with their cases before the official. In view of the use that some of the European powers are making of their missionaries to China, it might be well to ask, is this

move political or religious? It may be of

significance that the seat of operations is in what may reasonably be called Japan's hoped-for "sphere of influence," and in this connection the recent concessions to Japan at Amoy are interesting and suggestive.

T cannot be said that China does not

move, but thus far her movements have not been along predicted or demanded lines. There is a pathetic contradiction in her movements. She raises an army and demands that the soldier shall provide his own weapons and serve without pay. Not long since, several officers

in the regular army made a friendly call at the chapel. We spoke of the drilling of troops, asked when they would again be drilling, and whether it would be allowable for me to take a picture of them on the parade grounds. They assured me that it would, and asked what sort of drill I preferred to see - that with guns, spears or bows and arrows, saying that by far the best sight would be that with bows and arrows.

Not long after this we took a trip of thirty miles along the coast. I would not attempt to say how many old forts and

signal stations could be counted in that distance. An American would think it incredible if told. The cannon are now dismounted and the forts largely dismantled. At none of them would you find a garrison. The walls, once formidable, have been conquered by time and now lie prone in the dust. What was once the abode of strong men—and we may add, men with brave hearts is now the home of snakes and bats. Gates that once refused entrance to hostile troops now stand ever ajar, and welcome the buffalo and the goat to pasture on the sward within. Yet at times these ruins are the scenes of greatest activity. Coast defences are to be inspected! Each fort, dilapidated though it be, has its garrison hired for the occasion. The regulation number of banners (about two to every five soldiers) is displayed, and the dragon takes up his position on the flag-pole. The inspector knows his business and does not

go too near the forts.

He passes on, and the flag is hauled down and the banners folded away to await another occasion. The garrisons are paid off and the farce is over. This does not occur in the corner of the empire, but in an open part like Swatow the comedy is well played.

The official district in which Ungkung is located and of which it is the military center contains, roughly speaking, about one thousand square miles. To protect that region and to assist in repelling foreign invasion, more than six hundred soldiers are nominally required, and for this number the head military official draws pay from the Government. As a matter of fact, the district contains about one dozen regulars and the required number of "occasionals," as before explained.

An army equipped with bows and arrows, matchlocks and spears, fortifications manned by beggars, thieves and opium smokers, hired for the occasion; regulars on paper only; this may be movement, but it is such movement as a man makes in a drunken sleep. The military farce in China is an example of what one may find in every walk of life. In spite of all that can be said to the contrary, the last scene in the farce is being played, and the drunkard will soon awake to find himself stripped and wounded. Russia presses on the north, France races up from the south to defeat England's long projected plan of connecting Burma with Shanghai and Hongkong. England nominally controls the center, while Germany inserts a wedge between England and Russia. Italy and Japan are filibustering between Shanghai and Hongkong. This state of unrest, of plot and counterplot, cannot long continue, and China has neither the will nor the power to put off the final day. What China, or rather what the Chinese need, is reality and conscience. From what power shall these be obtained? Not from Russia, France, Germany nor England, but from the kingdom of heaven.

66

Nothing since the war with Japan has led the Chinese to distrust their Government more than has the demand of Italy. I have been asked repeatedly, "What country is Italy? We never heard of it before." And the universal comment is, Well, if China cannot resist the demands of that country she is of no account, and we need hope nothing further from her." With this loss of faith in the Government there is an evident revival of heathenism. Buddhist societies are active, temples and monasteries are being repaired and new ones built. I recently visited a temple that could not have cost less than $50,000, and I believe $100,000 would be nearer the cost. The gods were life size, covered with gold, and placed in glass cases, and a western clock was provided by which they might mark the rounds of time! How far this revival of heathenism is general I cannot say; I speak for my own district only. Perhaps the renewal of faith in the gods is only natural; but faith in the gods is destined to fail, and this will be the church's great opportunity.

Missionaries to Japan frequently say that Japan is the gateway to China, but I have never heard a missionary to China express that opinion. However, the first Japanese missionaries have arrived in the south of the Fo-kien Province, perhaps elsewhere. But they are the ambassadors of Japanese heathenism, not of Christianity. With what success do they meet? Teaching is apparently only a secondary matter. The people are enrolled, and promised help with their cases before the official. In view of the use that some of the European powers are making of their missionaries to China, it might be well to ask, is this move political or religious? It may be of significance that the seat of operations is in what may reasonably be called Japan's hoped-for sphere of influence," and in this connection the recent concessions to Japan at Amoy are interesting and suggestive.